PowerExpand Elite 13-in-1 Thunderbolt 3 Dock & mac mini

#1

My Macbook Pro is dying. From all accounts, the next generation macbook pro will be going back to magsafe charging. I’m debating going with the Mini or maybe the new macbook pro when it comes out, however, I fear my PowerExpand Elite 13-in-1 Thunderbolt 3 Dock will be obsolete because it sends power out to the computer over the thunderbolt 3 port. I need all the ports for my audio setup.

Questions:
1 - is there any way to disable the power output from the port that connects to the computer
2 - if I cannot disable that power, will the power output to the computer cause damage when connected to a computer that does not get powered over Thunderbolt 3?

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#2

The power output is disabled automatically if the connected device does not support charging over USB-C or does not auto-negotiate to do so. Your dock will work fine with any USB-C supporting computer, it will only charge computers that support that charging.

It is still not clear to me what Apple’s final design will be - the point of magsafe is for convenience and breakaway safety if the cord is tripped over. That doesn’t really apply when you have to plug in a dock on a desk anyway. So they could bring back mag-safe for charging on the go, and still allow USB-C PD charging in other situations like docked at a desk.

Good luck with getting your current computer to last until the new ones are available!

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